


"I Understand"

by TheDarkSeaofSecrets



Category: Rick and Morty
Genre: Aged-Up Morty Smith, Minimal Angst., Rick is bored, WHY YOU ALWAYS GOTTA LEAVE RICK, not by much though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2018-05-29
Packaged: 2019-05-15 13:12:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14791145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkSeaofSecrets/pseuds/TheDarkSeaofSecrets
Summary: Rick is bored and it might just be time to move on.Oneshot





	"I Understand"

**Author's Note:**

> “Just be better than me ok?”  
> “I already am,” Morty says with a sad smile.

Rick was never one for family birthdays, or just anyone’s birthday in general. Currently it was Summer’s nineteenth and Rick was bored out of his mind as she gushed over presents and “Oh wow mum this is the phone I’ve always wanted”.

She’d want another one in a week. He was sure of it. 

He’d much rather be off planet right now but he’d promised himself that he’d wait at least until they cut the cake. He owed them that much. Well actually he owed them a lot more but he just couldn’t stand the stagnant feeling he got whenever he was home and he finally couldn’t handle it anymore.

He looks around and tries to figure out what he actually adds to their silly little dysfunctional family. Beth still drank a bottle of wine a day, more if she was stressed which seemed like always. Jerry was still the same fucking idiot he’d always disliked and Summer was still, well the same old Summer.

The only one who showed much change was Morty and that only seemed to be in looks. He was taller now, less dorky looking but Rick supposes that when you run from all sorts of aliens five out of the seven weekdays you get a bit of muscle. He was taller as well and had taken to closing off all expressions from the rest of the world and atop that he’d even lost his stutter. Sure he’d gotten smarter Rick supposed but not where it counts for everyone else though.

Maybe he shouldn’t have ripped him out of school so much. He thought he’d been doing the right thing at the time but now staring at the boy he could see how much damage he had done. Morty still had time to change though. Rick just couldn’t be there to see it.

Finally Beth brings out the cake, it’s simple and pink with a simple “Happy Birthday Summer” on the top in white icing and they all burst into song. Rick takes it as his chance to disappear.

Over the past few days he’d been packing. Cramming everything into his ship and trying to hide it all from the family not that they seemed to notice. Morty didn’t even question why they hadn’t gone on an adventure in the last week, instead he’d seemed focused on something else.

Rick did guess it made it easier but he still felt like Morty should be yelling at him, screaming at him about leaving Beth behind again. But there was nothing. Just normal convocations and normal everyday life. The sort of stuff that he couldn’t handle anymore.

As he crams the last few things in his ship, he hears them stop singing and then footsteps. He knows who it is instantly and he wants him to turn around and walk the other way. To just give him five more minutes.

Sure he miss Morty not yelling at him but he didn’t need to ruin Summer’s party. That’s why he’s leaving now. More distractions. More people to look at. He just blended into the background.

The door opens as his shoving the last thing in the passenger seat and he shuts the door and walks around the ship to see Morty standing there arms crossed but he doesn’t look angry. He doesn’t have an expression it’s just that blank face that Rick’s taught him so well. Finally, he speaks and it breaks the heart Rick has been trying to keep buried for years.

“I’ll understand if you don’t come back.”

“Of course I’m coming back M-Morty. It’s Summer’s birthday. I’m not-not that much of a dick” He says but they can both see through the lie as if it was glass. He waits for Morty to explode. To shout and scream and alert the other birthday goers.

“Then I suppose that I’ll see you later then” Morty says slowly and Rick nods. They stand there silent for a few seconds before Rick can’t handle it and he hops into the driver’s side of the ship.

He turns back to the kid once more and tries to remember everything about the little dork. Finally, he speaks quietly but it echoes around the now empty room.

“Just be better than me ok?”

“I already am” Morty says with sad smile. 

Rick was right, he never changed a thing. Morty was the one who changed him. Did he make him better? Rick wasn’t so sure but change was something at least. 

“Of course, you are. Your Morty.” Rick says as he shuts the door. He looks away from the kid that nearly cost him everything over and over again and yet gave him almost everything he thought he never wanted. 

He flies for the stars and never looks back.

**Author's Note:**

> None of these characters belong to me. All rights to Justin and Dan.


End file.
